Demystifying the Memories of a Fruitfly

Despite its tiny size, the fruitfly (Drosophila) brain is fairly intricate.Recently a group of neuroscien- tists from the CAS Institute of Biophysics (IBP) have managed to catch the first glimpse of the circuitry within a fruitfly neural s ys tem for visu…     

Discovery of a Complete Isomorphous Series of ZnS-CdS in Nature

Isomorphism is a universal phenomenon, which helps us gain more knowledge aboutnature. Thanksto the phenomenon,for example,many newspecies andgenera have beenidentified in plantand animal taxonomy. In geology,however,thecompleteisomorphousseries is quite rare. Among thenearly100new mineralsdiscoveredover the past two decades, no re-porthas been made on such series.Itseems to be more difficultto finditoutthantodiscovera newmineral. Recently, a research groupheaded by Prof. Liu Tiegen…     

Exploring a typology of technology-intensive firms: when is a rose a great rose?

Previous research has contributed to our understanding of technology-intensive firms by proposing alternative typologies or classifications of these firms. This study explores the Koberg typology that characterizes firms by growth stage and production technology into four types of organizations: Embryonic, Start-up, Growth, and Mature Multiline. We propose that, consistent with the typology, firms in each type will differ in strategy, structure, practices, and leadership and that performance is contingent on the fit between organizational factors and typology type. In a study of 377 technology-intensive firms, we find support for differences among organizations in organizational variables by typology type. The characteristics of the organizations as well as the typology are significant in explaining organizational performance. However, except for organizational structure, the firm characteristics that are related to performance do not significantly vary by type. The results are discussed in the context of theory development and managerial implications.     

‘New Ways of Working’ as a tool for improving the performance of a knowledge-intensive company

This paper explores ‘New Ways of Working’ (NewWoW) – that is, non-traditional mobile and flexible work practices, settings and locations using sufficient ICT tools – as a novel approach to improve the performance of a knowledge-intensive organization. This paper makes a contribution by illustrating how the measurement of the impacts of NewWoW can be done and by producing empirical evidence of the benefits of NewWoW. The conceptual background of the study is anchored in the literature on knowledge work productivity and performance as well as on NewWoW. The empirical section reports a longitudinal case study of a change process during which the case company, Rapal, went through a NewWoW project. The impacts of the change are evaluated based on the results of both objective and subjective performance measures. The project was successful and resulted in significant cost savings as well as improvements in environmental performance (CO₂ emissions).     

Boundary stabilization of a class of reaction–advection–diffusion systems via a gradient-based optimization approach

In this paper, the boundary stabilization problem of a class of unstable reaction–advection–diffusion (RAD) systems described by a scalar parabolic partial differential equation (PDE) is considered. Different the previous research, we present a new gradient-based optimization framework for designing the optimal feedback kernel for stabilizing the unstable PDE system. Our new method does not require solving non-standard Riccati-type or Klein–Gorden-type PDEs. Instead, the feedback kernel is parameterized as a second-order polynomial whose coefficients are decision variables to be tuned via gradient-based dynamic optimization, where the gradients of the system cost functional (which penalizes both kernel and output magnitude) with respect to the decision parameters are computed by solving a so-called “costate” PDE in standard form. Special constraints are imposed on the kernel coefficients to ensure that the optimized kernel yields closed-loop stability. Finally, three numerical examples are illustrated to verify the effectiveness of the proposed approach.     

The Pailure of a Black Hero in a White World——A Study of Othello''''s Tragedy

This article analyses the real cause of the tragedy of Othello. From the perspective of his social status, the article points out that the implication of his collapse into murderous violence is actually his constant worries about the threats to his social identity as a black hero in a white world.     

Institute of Neuroscience Sees a Good Start

The past four years have served as a phase of sound inception for the development of the CAS Institute of Neuoscience (ION), noted Prof. Mu-ming Poo, founding director of ION, at the anniversary meeting held from Nov. 29 to Dec. 1 in Shanghai.Founded on Nov. 27,1999 as a result of the CAS-wide drive for excellence in research known as the Knowledge Innovation Program (KIP), ION is devoted to the whole spectrum of neuroscience, including     

The Failure of a Black Hero in a White World——A Study of Othello''s Tragedy

This article analyses the real cause of the tragedy of Othello. From the perspective of his social status, the article points out that the implication of his collapse into murderous violence is actually his constant worries about the threats to his social identity as a black hero in a white world.     

Research center for a new approach of TCM

It is recognized that modern Western medicine (MWM) is largely allopathic and evidence-based,while traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has its origin in the ancient Taoist     

Effect of varying durations of pyramid exposure — an indication towards a possibility of overexposure

Miniature replicas modeled after the Great Pyramid of Giza are believed to concentrate geoelectromagnetic energy within their cavities and hence act as antistressors in humans and animals. Although there are not many reports of adverse effects of ‘overexposure’ in the pyramid, subjects have claimed to feel uneasy after certain duration of staying in the pyramid. The present study was aimed to analyze the effects of prolonged pyramid exposure on plasma cortisol level, markers of oxidative damage and antioxidant defense in erythrocytes of adult female Wistar rats. Rats were divided into three groups, normal controls (NC, n=6) that were maintained under standard laboratory conditions in their home cages, pyramid exposed group-2 (PE-2, n=6) & pyramid exposed group-4 (PE-4, n=6) where the rats were housed under the pyramid for 6 hours/day for 2 weeks and 4 weeks respectively. Plasma cortisol and erythrocyte TBARS levels were significantly lower in both PE-2 and PE-4 rats and erythrocyte GSH levels and GSH-Px activity were significantly higher in them as compared to the NC rats. There was no significant difference in the results for these parameters between the PE-2 and PE-4 rats except for erythrocyte GSH-Px activity which was significantly more in the PE-2 rats than in the PE-4 rats. Although these results don’t confirm any adverse effects of prolonged exposure in pyramids, they indicate a possibility of such adverse effects.     

Experimental quantum teleportation of a two-qubit composite system

Quantum teleportation, a way to transfer the state of a quantum system from one location to another, is central to quantum communication and plays an important role in a number of quantum computation protocols. Although significant experimental advances h…     

Mapping Out the Structure of a Spinach Light-Harvester

The major light-harvesting complex of photosystem II (LHC-II) serves as the prin-cipal solar energy collector in thephotosynthesis of green plants andpresumably also functions inphotoprotection under high-lightconditions. Many of its structureswere revealed by a work of a 3.2? electron crystallographic modelof LHC-II in 1994. Since then re-searchers have eagerly awaited ahigher-resolution structure to ex-tendknowledge ofthe lightharvest-ing and energy transfer processesinvolv…     

Can the inerter be a successful shock-absorber? The case of a ball-screw inerter with a variable thread lead

This paper investigates an application of a ball-screw inerter for mitigation of impact loadings. The problem of impact absorption is to provide a minimum reaction force that optimally decelerates and eventually stops an impacting object within the available absorber stroke. It significantly differs from vibration mitigation problems which are typical application of inerters. The paper demonstrates that the optimum absorption can be achieved by fully passive means. For known values of the object mass and inerter parameters, the obtained solution is independent of the impact velocity. The optimum passive absorption is achieved by employing a variable thread lead. As a result, two force components emerge, the typical inertance-related force and a damping-like term, and sum up to provide the optimum constant deceleration force. This result is relatively unique: conventional absorbers do not provide a constant force even with complex active control systems. Finally, an optimization problem is formulated to reduce the influence of process uncertainties (range of possible mass values, unknown friction). The results are verified and analyzed in a numerical example.     

The shifting role of information processing and management in interdiscipline development: From a collection of tools to a crutch?

Information science, high-performance computing and artificial intelligence have boosted interdisciplinary topics in a wide range of domains, which calls for novel theories and methods specialized for the interdisciplinary research driven by information processing and management (IP&M)-centric methodology, frameworks and methods. In this article, we present a taxonomy of the IP&M_driven interdiscipline describing different levels of cross-disciplinary research paradigms centered around data, information and computing, and discuss opportunities and challenges confronted with the IP&M-driven interdiscipline development. We highlight the role of IP&M (and related disciplines, fields, or areas) in facilitating the interdisciplinary research and development.     

CAS scientists develop demo devices of a new MRAM

The magnetic random access memory(MRAM) is a key device for the future computer, information and telecommunication technologies. CAS scientists have recently developed a demo device for a new type of MRAM, which could overcome two bottleneck problems for its development, namely, high energy consumption and low storage density.     

Patchwork plagiarism – a jigsaw of stolen puzzle pieces

Plagiarism remains at the top in terms of interest to the scientific community. In its many vicious forms, patchwork plagiarism is characterized by numerous unresolved issues and often passes “below the radar” of editors and reviewers. The problem of detecting the complexity of misconduct has been partially resolved by plagiarism detection software. However, interpretation of relevant reports is not always obvious or easy. This article deals with plagiarism in general and patchwork plagiarism in particular, as well as related problems that editors must deal with to maintain the integrity of scientific journals.     

Creating a National Astronomical Research Center of International Prestige

I. The Creation of an Integrated Astronomical Research Center Following the launch of the CAS’s Knowledge In- novation Program (KIP) pilot project in 1998, it was formally decided in April 1999 to merge the following CAS institutions: five astronomical o…     

New Fossils of a Primitive Man Found at Zhoukoudian

A news release announcesthat the fossilized remainsof one or two primitive menwere recently discovered in a cavein the vicinity of the world-renownedsite of Peking Man.The news was released at apress conference jointly hosted byCAS and Beijing Municipal Govern-ment on July 7 in Beijing. Scientistsbelieve the discovery will rekindlethe publics interest in Zhoukoudian,a mountainous village 48 kilometerssouthwest of downtown Beijing. OnDecember 2, 1929, a young Chinesepaleontologist named P…     

Trial Operation of a Stand-alone Wave Power System Successful

Agroup of scientists from the CAS GuangzhouInsti- tute of EnergyConversionsucceeded on January 9 in their firstsea trial of a stand-alone wave powersystem,marking significant progressin generating stable electricity withwave energy.As a most unstable source ofrenewable energy, waves are diffi-cult to harness and convert intoelectricity. Statistics inreal sea con-ditionsshowthat themaximal energyproduced by waves could be 7–10times their average over 10 minutes.Although expensive equipment …     

1984: a new push of basic innovations?

With labour market problems pressing national governments to support private innovation, the market mechanism is reinforced as it sets the rate and direction of innovation: (1) in the mix of improvement innovations in established industries, labour-saving technologies are outnumbering the product innovations that offer additional employment and investment opportunities, and (2) basic innovations are rare (stale-mate in technology), but when they occur they tend to occur in ‘clusters’. The competitive nature of allocative decisions on corporate R&D and innovative investment is complemented by the competitive R&D policy of most European countries. As those decisions concern large-scale, highcomplexity technologies, the perspective that the market mechanism tends to produce them in ‘clusters’ poses serious problems of timing, spacing, and — of course — of value judgement about alternative technological developments in the European context. These strategic problems of innovation policy have risen to such a level of potential conflict that they need harmonization.